Demi Lovato has more than a word or two for critics of her Cosmopolitan cover and opens up about why she chose to reveal so much and what message she wants to send to her fans. With her characteristic candor, the pop music star is setting the record straight.

As she reveals in an interview with E!News, she has plenty to say to critics who don’t like the Cosmopolitan cover (which you can see below) in which she’s wearing a one-piece silver number that’s low and plunging and leaves little to the imagination.

While some may think, oh, just another pop music star showing some skin to get more, uh, exposure, so to speak. Demi Lovato has a different message.

She tells the celebrity news outlet, “It took so much for me to get a place where I would feel comfortable enough to do that.”

She went on to say, “If anything, it’s showing all of my fans who know my story and my journey that I’ve gone from hating every inch of my body to doing a photo shoot in my underwear in front of the entire world. That’s more of statement to me than just looking sexy on a magazine cover.” She went on to underscore the point, saying, “It’s so important for me to show people that.”

And for those who know her backstory — and her fans, the Lovatics certainly do as does much of the music and entertainment following crowd — it was just five years ago that she was in rehab for an eating disorder, cutting, substance abuse and emotional issues. She could well have wound up as another Disney star casualty, in obscurity, if not worse. So from that perspective, she’s got a point, complaints are hollow and misplaced.

She’s one year further into her twenties, the Disney star whom we first saw on ‘Barney and Friends’ when her age was in the single digits and her co-star was a purple dinosaur. Yes, now, as she turns 23, she’s got a hot new single, ‘Cool for the Summer’ arguably one of our songs of the summer.

And, Demi Lovato has choice words for the complainers. She says, “Watch your damn kids! You don’t want them reading the magazine? Watch your kids!” Indeed, a bit of parental responsibility goes a long way!

Check out the (faux?) controversial Demi Lovato Cosmopolitan cover and the hit song of the summer below!